Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40997298›Full record

ArticleJMIR medical education2025

Mapping the Evolution of China's Traditional Chinese Medicine Education Policies: Insights From a BERTopic-Based Descriptive Study.

Tao Yang, Fan Yang, Yong Li

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JMIR medical education, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Tao YangSchool of Basic Medical Sciences, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China.ORCID 0009-0008-5859-8769
Fan YangSchool of Management, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Sichuan Province, Chengdu, 611137, China, 86 15828528952.ORCID 0009-0005-0673-9249
Yong LiSchool of Management, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Sichuan Province, Chengdu, 611137, China, 86 15828528952.ORCID 0009-0002-5524-0653

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) education in China has evolved significantly, shaped by both national policy and social needs. Despite this, the academic community has yet to fully explore the long-term trends and core issues in TCM education policies. As the global interest in TCM continues to grow, understanding these trends becomes crucial for guiding future policy and educational reforms. This study used cutting-edge deep learning techniques to fill this gap, offering a novel, data-driven perspective on the evolution of TCM education policies. Objective: This study aimed to systematically analyze the research topics and evolutionary trends in TCM education policies in China using a deep learning-based topic modeling approach, providing valuable insights to guide future policy development and educational practices. Methods: TCM policy-related documents were collected from major sources, including the Ministry of Education, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, PKU Lawinfo, and archives of TCM colleges. The text was preprocessed and analyzed using the BERTopic model, a state-of-the-art tool for topic modeling, to extract key themes and examine the policy development trajectory. Results: The analysis revealed 27 core topics in TCM education policies, including medical education, curriculum reform, rural health care, internationalization, and the integration of TCM with modern education systems. These topics were clustered into 5 stages of policy evolution: marginalization, standardization, specialization, systematization, and restandardization. These stages reflect the ongoing balancing act between modernizing TCM education and preserving its traditional values, while adapting to national political, social, and economic strategies. Conclusions: This study offers groundbreaking insights into the dynamic and multifaceted evolution of TCM education policies in China. By leveraging the BERTopic model, it provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the forces shaping TCM education and offers actionable recommendations for future policy making. The findings are essential for educators, policymakers, and researchers aiming to refine and innovate TCM education in an increasingly globalized world.

Indexed as

Education, MedicalHealth PolicyMedicine, Chinese TraditionalChinaCurriculumDeep LearningHumansPolicy MakingBERTopicdescriptive studypolicy evolutiontopic analysistraditional Chinese medicine education policy

Identifiers

PMID40997298
PMCPMC12463338

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.